Car Shopping Round 1

After repeated calls from the Kia dealer, I decided to start looking at cars yesterday afternoon. I started at the Toyota dealer, first because they really only had one car I was interested in, and second because it’s at the extreme end of the highway that most of the dealers closest to my house occupy. I think with a couple exceptions every brand available in RI has a presence along Route 2. So in spite of the kid I talked to trying to sell me anything else but a 4Runner, I drove one. It’s not as big as I thought but still plenty roomy. It’s an honest truck based SUV, and the one I tested didn’t have many frills or unnecessary extras. It would be great for camping trips or hauling things, and I have no doubt that it’s plenty capable in any situation I’d be likely to throw at it, and then some. The problem is I’ll be using this car primarily for commuting in often heavy traffic. The truck based MPG and truck based ride kind of don’t make sense there. Even though the thing has some torquey grunt, it’s a big heavy truck so it doesn’t get off the line quickly. What I’m getting at is I think the 4Runner is great, but not the right tool for the job. I’ll probably look at it again when we decide to replace the Jeep.

The next stop was a Ford dealer. I didn’t actually drive anything here. I sat in an Explorer and a Flex. Both were very nice, but HUGE. Way too big to serve primarily as a daily commuter. I also took another look at a Taurus, just to be sure. I quickly confirmed that they are oddly small inside, like a reverse Tardis. The kid also showed me a Fusion even though I explained my issue with them. I get the impression that maybe he got some extra incentive if he sold one. Unsurprisingly, the center console remained unchanged, so I had no interest. I will say that all the Fords I looked at were nicely appointed. With the exception of the Flex what I looked at were midlevel trim models (The Flex was the only one on the lot and had all the options save a couple minor cosmetic things). Ford has really stepped up their game in this regard. I was impressed, but the individual pieces didn’t come together in a way that worked for me.

I drove down the road to the Hyundai dealer. I really only wanted to see a Genesis. After a brief glance at a Santa Fe and Tucson to ensure that they really are nondescript egg-like CUVs, I spoke to a sales person and drove a Genesis. There’s a reason Hyundai is using this car as the breaking off point into a luxury brand. This thing is NICE. It’s slightly bigger than the Optima, and the base model has more bells and whistles than I really want or need but it was comfortable. It’s also laid out intuitively, which is something car makers seem to struggle with as they cram more gizmos into products. I wouldn’t call it fast, but it hit highway speed with no effort, and it wasn’t afraid to pass. For a bigger car it corners well. There’s apparently also a sport mode that the salesman didn’t show me until after the test drive. I’m not sure it would make a huge difference, but I’d like to find out. I priced it out, and it’s easily in my range. This thing makes the short list.

At this point I was running into the time I had agreed to meet up with the Kia salesman, so I made my way down the road to the dealership. I was expecting it to be a quick trip, as I’d already decided the Sorrento is too big, and the only other option is the Sportage, which looks eggy. Or at least the 2016 model did. They’ve recently updated the looks and released the 2017 model (in March?). It’s slightly less hideous, and I’ve had good experiences with this salesman and this dealership, so I gave it the benefit of the doubt and drove one. If you’re in the market for a car and not sure what you want, dump any preconceived notions you may have and go look at a Kia. They’re putting together some decent cars for fairly reasonable prices. The Sportage I drove was an EX, their midlevel trim. But it had heated leather seats, dual climate control, a heated leather steering wheel, a huge fancy power sunroof I would probably never use, and all sorts of the warnings and nannies and things that people want now.

It drove fine. It wasn’t exciting. The ride was fairly smooth. The seats are comfortable. It was capable on the highway. It’s got space for people and stuff. It’s a good solid all –around car. I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it. If it was crazy cheap I would consider it. The problem was, it wasn’t crazy cheap. It’s not expensive either, no Kia is except maybe the K900, but I’ve never actually seen one in person. They may be a myth. These things are fresh off the truck and Kia is trying to flush out the 2016 models, so there’s no incentives on them. That combined with the fact that I need to dispose of the Optima put the price just a few dollars shy of the Genesis. I can’t think of a reason I would do that to myself.

It took me about four hours to run through this gauntlet. I think they were fairly productive. I eliminated Toyota and Ford, and unless something interesting happens, Kia. I didn’t expect the Genesis to make the cut, but it’s currently a top contender.  I’ve also come to the conclusion that most SUVs are probably a bad fit for my situation, even if I like them (Jeep). I’ve also got time. I don’t need to rush to find something, and I can make sure I’m getting a  good deal when I figure out what I want.

On a final note, I’d like to encourage you again to go look at a Kia if you’re in the market for a new car. My opinion is likely strongly colored by the good experience I had at the dealer (Bald Hill Kia) and with the salesman (Al Paulo). The thing is, Kia really is building good cars now, and for the price it’s hard to beat the options. If they made an all wheel drive Optima, I’d take one in a heartbeat. They don’t currently, and the AWD options they do have aren’t meeting up with my personal taste and use case. Maybe they’ll meet yours though.

Rhode Island Auto Show

After reading the last blog, my wife pointed out her two requirements and asked that I add them. First, she would like to be able to sit high enough so that she can see out of the car. Second, she would like the gas cap to be on the driver side. She realizes that this is largely up to chance, and it's not a deal-breaker. 

This past weekend I managed to convince my wife to attend the Rhode Island Auto Show with me. This is a smaller show, sponsored primarily by the RI dealers association and Motor Trend. It’s mostly current model cars, though I saw at least one preproduction model. There may have been more, but if so they blended in with everything else. This isn’t the sort of thing I would normally attend, but since I’m in the market for a new car it was a good chance to look at a lot of things on the list without dealing with sales people. I did have to contend with other people trying to do the same thing but they generally weren’t bad. People letting their kids play in the cars was mildly annoying, however. I also found the teenage boys taking selfies in the high end cars mildly amusing.

The RI convention center isn’t huge, so not every model from every brand was represented, and there were a couple of makes that were absent entirely. Still, I was able to check out a majority of the cars on the long list and get my wife’s impressions. We agreed on two overarching points. First, there is very little diversity of design, even across brands, particularly in the midsize sedan and small and midsize CUV categories. I find this to be especially true with the CUVs. They all tend to be vaguely egg shaped high riding boxes of bland.

Second, control layout, particularly the center stack in most cars is in serious need of UI engineering. It’s like everyone is so fixated on cramming as much tech into the car as they possibly can that they forgotten to make it usable. The potential for distracted driving is really high with some of the layouts and options. It’s no wonder they’re starting to pile on assisting breaking and lane departure warnings as a standard. 

Like I said above though, I did get a chance to take a look at several of the cars on the list, plus a few more, and get my wife’s opinion before she got too burned out and just responded to everything with “meh, car.” It altered the long list pretty significantly. My notes are below. I will say first, that after looking at the crew cab pickups, they’re out. They just feel like a compromise in every direction. Anyway, on with the notes:

Mazda CX-5: The wife says it’s practical and too cute. “A kindergarten teacher’s car”.

Mazda CX-3: We both liked the way it looked, but it’s really tiny on the inside.

Volvo XC 70: The wife said “I like this” but Volvo is really the first place we took note of the crazy center console design. The dial pad in the middle is weird and dated. I didn’t look at an XC 90 to see if it still existed in a newer offering. Maybe I should have.

Audi A3: it’s too small. Incidentally, the wife pointed at the A3 avant, laughed, and said it was a total kindergarten teacher car. So there’s that. I’m not sure why she hates kindergarten teachers so much.

Hyundai Tucson and Santa Fe: bland, inoffensive, boring, forgettable. They blend right in. My actual note was “meh”.

Honda Pilot: Not originally on the list, I was on the fence about the Pilot. I still am, but the wife liked it, so it bares a closer look. I usually have a problem with the seats in Hondas being too firm, but they weren’t awful in the Pilot we sat in. Also of note, I didn’t see an HRV. It may have blended in with all the other Hondas. If so, not a good sign.

Honda Civic – they had a 2016 on the floor. I’m really impressed with it. It’s big enough that I initially thought it was an Accord. It’s really nice looking, and the wife thought so too. It’s not AWD though, so it doesn’t get added to the list.

Ford Flex: The wife really liked the Flex. I want to hate it, but I don’t. I’m adding adding it to the list. It wouldn’t be the first time I’m surprised by something I think I’ll hate.

Ford Taurus: For as big as this car is, there really isn’t much room inside.

Ford Fusion: The Fusion made realize I should have been taking pictures all along. It, along with its cousin the Lincoln MKZ had what my very well be the stupidest design “feature” we saw the entire day. Forward of the gear selector, right next to your knee in the spot where in most cars there’s a little tray or a bin where you chuck your phone and your extra bits and spare change, there’s this impossibly deep hole with open sides. W.T.F? I don’t think I’ve ever been turned off from a car by a more minor, but significant detail.

This is by your knee. How is that useful?

Ford Explorer: They had a Platinum trim model on the floor. It was very nice and Crissy really liked it. I still on the fence about them, they’re big, and they get expensive quick when you start adding options. Also, it’s sitting on the same platform as the Taurus but it still wants to pretend it’s a truck. I have a hard time reconciling that.

Lincoln MKZ: same as the fusion. The 2017 is probably the sexiest Lincoln I’ve ever seen though. Or maybe I’m just getting old.

Fiat 500x: I think Fiat probably has one of the best marketing media groups in the industry. On line these looked neat. They gave the impression of being bigger and a little more rugged, almost like a rally car. In person they’re almost indistinguishable from the other versions of the 500.

Chrysler 200: I had read the warnings about how small the rear passenger openings and back seat are. I still managed to hit my head trying to get in. Who designs this stuff? How does it get past QC?

Jeep Patriot: This one caused a little confusion, and I admit some frustration for me. My wife has laughed these off repeatedly as “wannabe jeeps” in the past. I ran with that opinion in my mind, and, added to the consistently poor reviews these have received, I didn’t consider it. My wife pointed it out at the show, said it was neat, and refused to hear my objections. I may have to drive it before I’m allowed to dismiss it entirely again.

Jeep Wrangler/Unlimited: I knew my wife liked these, I just didn’t realize how much. There were all sorts of alternate driving arrangements proposed, and after sitting in both a 2 door and a 4 door, both in Sahara trim, she was spent. I still question the practicality of the Wrangler as a daily driver.

Mercedes GLA: Mercedes also has a great art department, or at least good photographers. On line, the GLA looks like a slightly lifted, sporty little hatchback. In person this thing is a toad on wheels.

Lexus IS: In particular, an IS 350 F AWD. Lexus takes the cockpit feel to the extreme. It was a neat car. I’m not an overly large man, and my wife is on the petite side. When we both got in the car the word she used was “smooshed”. I’m guessing the backseat is there for show.

BMW 2 series: This is the only realistic car BMW had at the show. It’s tiny like a go cart. There was an M4, and I wanted to take a look to get an idea of the interior room. It was surrounded by teenage boys taking selfies. I couldn’t get close to it.

Toyota 4runner: This thing is truck in all the right ways. It still might be too big.

We also looked at several other things on list but they received reviews of “acceptable” from my wife, or at least “meh, car” which I take to mean “acceptable, but I’m tired of looking at cars, and we’ve been here two hours and I’m hungry.” As I may have mentioned previously, cars are really not her thing. For those of you keeping score, we’ve eliminated all the Mazdas, the Audi A3 and the Hyundai CUV. Also gone are the Fusion and the Taurus from Ford ( I thought these would be top contenders), The sole Lincoln on the list as well as the lone Fiat. Rounding out the eliminated pool are the Chrysler 200, the GLA from Mercedes, the Lexus IS, and the 2 series BMWs.

I also added a couple cars. I will definitely be taking a close look at the Ford Flex, and I haven’t ruled out the Explorer, but again, I think it’s too big, and too expensive when you start adding options. I’ll also likely be taking a closer look at the Pilot when I go to find the elusive Honda HRV. Finally, I don’t think I can satisfactorily dismiss the Patriot without a test drive.

All in all this was a worthwhile trip. Admittedly it was a lot to take in, and even I got burned out by the time we left. The next step is probably some dealer visits and some hefty review sifting. I probably won’t start that for a couple of months to give the weather a chance to stabilize and to be closer to the lease end date on the Kia. As always, if you have a comment or a suggestion, let me know.